Dark Side of the Blog

Start your CD... now.

This week, I’ve been going mad with songs stuck in my head that I absolutely can’t stand. Shit by Boston and Journey and that stupid “Complicated” song by that poser-riotgrrrrl from Canada. It’s okay if you like that stuff, but it sure doesn’t belong stuck in my brain. But it’s all cool. I just pop in Dark Side, and breathe deeply of the most fucking awesome album ever made.

Am I a Floyd fan? I guess you can say that. Roger Waters gave me the strength to survive high school. That probably wasn’t his goal, helping pimply-faced adolescents get through their rough hormonal years, but there it is. And before I know it, ten years has gone behind me. I survived thanks to Floyd.

I probably haven’t listened whole to the album in five years, but just recently, I went to a laser show that played Dark Side in its entirety. I realized that I missed it. Diggin’ it through my headphones. Eatin’ a little sushi. Floyd and wassabi. That’d wake me up!

The problem with Dark Side is that it is totally overplayed on the radio, but song by song. The album is a dish, meant to be consumed whole. All the time that I’ve been hearing each individual song on the radio, minus “On the Run,” “Great Gig in the Sky,” and “Any Colour You Like,” I had forgotten how incredible the album is. The album is sung almost entirely by David Gilmore, with some help by Rick Wright, which makes it fairly unusual in the Floyd discography. Dave has a great rock-singing voice, slightly soft and rough at the same time. Rog, for all my love and adoration for him, may he be praised, doesn’t have the same caliber voice. But the vocals on Dark Side are smooth and softly spoken. Magic.

I’m not frightened of dying. Any time will do. Why should I be frightened of dying? There’s no reason for it. We’ve all got to go sometime. Death is obviously the counter-point to life. Eternity is no bargain. Since we are a mere glimmer in this universe, every moment is vital and brilliant. Our lifespan is perfect to do SOMETHING. Every something that we do adds up, making civilization something special, making history move, making life precious and worthwhile. It is because we die that we can live.

The most overplayed song on Dark Side is “Money.” Lord knows I change the station whenever I hear it on the Classic-Rock stations. Still, just hearing that fuzzy, thick bass line is so satisfying after listening to “Gig.” Perfection. Then there is that really, truly amazing guitar solo. I’ve seen Dave play the shit out of it live... in the rain... the pouring rain... and he just wouldn’t stop... not even after a half an hour of playing it... oh God when will he stop..., but on the album it is just right. An obvious demonstration of how great Floyd was when they acted like a band. Meddle and The Wall have a bit of this synergy to, but nothing like Dark Side.

A war for oil? I don’t know. Most conflicts do tend to boil down to us vs. them, the have-nots vs. the haves. The lengths that people will go through to try to keep the crap that they have from falling into the clutches of those who want what they have is pretty great. Right now, I see this inevitable conflict in the current battle over copyright vs. public domain. Our inevitable conflict with Iraq scares the shit out of me. I certainly don’t want a nasty dictator to have access to nuclear weapons, but that goes for a lot of countries, not just Iraq. When has America had success installing a friendly regime after invading and waging war with a country? Won’t that whole area destabilize further prompting a lot more anti-American feelings from the down and out?

“Any Colour You Like” is my favorite track on Dark Side. Wedged between “Us and Them” and “Brain Damage,” it is just a bit of psychedelic tinkering that messes with your head when you listen to the album through headphones. Reminds me a lot of Yes, who also tinkered a lot on their albums. Yeah, I admit it, I like Prog Rock. You gotta problem with that? Fuck you, you Journey-loving prick.

Ah, the breakdown of communication between men and between ourselves. Explored thoroughly in “Brain Damage,” by Roger Waters. Sure, it could have to do with drug use, which most people believe, and is supported by the Syd Barrett reference, “and if the band you’re in starts playing different tunes,” since by all accounts that is what happened to poor acid-burned-out Syd. But it is about any type of madness, not just drug induced, and how it separates us from others.

I can’t think of anything else to say. (Just say anything.) (Laughter.) Nothing that‘s nice. (Another chuckle.)

This blog entry didn’t really match up to Dark Side of the Moon, really. As a matter of fact, it was all daft.

Posted by Jonathan at 03:23 AM, 11 October 2002

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